Comic book price guide

From the early 1960s onward, the community of comic collectors, who frequently engaged in trading and selling among themselves, experienced a notable growth. This expansion was accompanied by an increase in the number of comics dealers operating within the industry. In 1965, Michael Cohen and Tom Horsky published what is considered the first comics price guide, the one-shot digest The Argosy Price Guide (specifically for Hollywood, California's, Argosy Book Shop).[2]

Comic back-issue prices had stabilized by the end of the 1960s.[2] In 1970, Jerry Bails, who had recently published the Collector’s Guide to the First Heroic Age, was considering creating a comic book price guide. He was contacted by Bob Overstreet, who was doing the same thing. Bails' extensive notes, supplemented by Overstreet's study of dealer listings, "became a backbone to the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide."[3] Overstreet's guide instantly became an invaluable resource tool for comic book collectors.[2]

The initial editions of the Overstreet guide did not include the category of underground comix in its listings. This gap was addressed by Jay Kennedy in 1982 with the publication of The Official Underground And Newave Comix Price Guide. Though now out of print, this guide remains a valuable resource for information about artists and publishers within the underground comix genre. In 2006, Dan Fogel, who was an advisor and contributor to the Overstreet guide, published Fogel's Underground Comix Price Guide. In 2010, a supplementary magazine was introduced, encompassing minicomics and British undergrounds alongside the latest pricing data.

The emergence of online auction platforms like eBay led to significant declines in the sales of traditional price guides. This was attributed to the fact that the price listings in these guides did not accurately reflect the actual sale prices of comics. Subsequently, publications such as Comics Buyer's Guide magazine and the CBG Standard Catalog of Comic Books began reporting genuine completed auction results from eBay. These reports span longer periods than what eBay's online results typically cover. The 2005 edition of the Standard Catalog is extensive, spanning 1,624 pages and reporting results dating back to 2002. Currently, the online price guide for slabbed comics is GPAnalysis, which aggregates data from verified sales by several pre-approved sellers and auction houses.

To ensure independent evaluation and impartial certification, established third-party companies like Certified Guaranty Company (CGC) or Comic Book Certification Service (CBCS) offer grading services for comics. These companies allow comic books to be submitted for comprehensive assessment, including grading, restoration checks, and encapsulation within tamper-evident protective holders.

In the realm of comic book grading, disagreements between dealers and graders regarding certain classification assessments are not uncommon. The process of grading comics can be subjective, even though the industry has established fundamental standards. A numeric system is employed alongside a titled grading system, with both ranging from 0.5 (Poor) to 10.0 (Mint or "Gem Mint"). While some collectors and companies solely utilize numeric grading or terminology, mixed grades with titles like Very Good/Fine (5.0) adhere to the lower grade being stated first, followed by the higher grade.

Furthermore, within the established grades, descriptive notes might be included. This is because comics assigned the same technical grade can have differing reasons for receiving that grade. Moreover, individual collectors often possess their own preferences and biases regarding which imperfections they find more tolerable than others.

• Title is the name of a comic book series. For example, Action Comics is a title. Within this title, there have been over 1,000 issues.
• Issue is a single installment of a title, usually with its own number. Examples are Action Comics #23 or The Amazing Spider-Man #42. A volume number may also be included, such as Punisher Vol. 1 #23.
• Grading is the process of evaluating the condition and consequent value of a comic book. A detailed explanation of how to determine a comic book’s condition based on the established grades[4] is generally included in a comic book pricing guide. A copy that falls between grades may be noted with a ${\displaystyle +}$ or a ${\displaystyle -}$ symbol. These terms are as follows:

• Direct market
• Comic book collecting